Tag: food glorious food

I’ve found myself doing a bit of baking lately. Maybe it’s the slightly cooler weather, maybe I’ve found some more down time, or maybe I just found myself with a lot of nectarines these past few days.

Maybe I ‘accidentally on purpose’found myself with a lot of nectarines. Anything to make…

This nectarine crumble. The recipe is originally a peach one, but really, anything goes. And when you eat it, the sugary sweetness of the nectarines complimenting so well against the soft baked pastry crumble, oh. Oh man…

Nom nom nom. Better than any bought sugary treat, because let’s face it, I know what went in there, as opposed to all those other things on the shelves.

Until you are a parent, I think you can’t really understand how seeing your child happy, makes you so happy. Parents are so selfless in this way, going the extra mile, making that extra bit of effort, and going to all ends of the earth, just to see a smile, on an toddler’s often temperamental, dial.

I mean, you don’t even need a special occasion. When baby girl’s cousin’s Mum (whew!) messaged me and showed me some deets for a place that does little girl pampering sessions…

Well, I was sold as soon as I saw the pink bathrobes.

OMG. Like, they could not get any cuter. Our motherly hands and feet were not touched, nor was our hair tended to, drinks provided, and no we did not have Sex and the City on in the background. Instead,

How perfect. Did they know baby girl was in the midst of a massive ongoing Moana marathon?

Watching the girls faces as they got their nails painted, their hair braided, and enjoyed a cupcake and some drink while taking in all of the princess-y comforts, well, it made our hearts sing with happiness.

And the patience? Oh, the patience! They listened and sat still and waited as their female needs were attended to, not once acting like normal 4 year olds who can’t sit still!

What gives? Baby girl, care to be like this at home with me?!

Following their session we walked around the corner to enjoy some pizza and chicken and chips, where the drawings to colour-in just kept on coming. VERY kid friendly.

It was the most perfect of princess pampering days, and the cuteness… please… I can’t, it is so damn cute.

I love it. I love it so much and I didn’t even get it.

That’s called L♥VE.

Princess Pampering, otherwise known as Harmoni, can be found at 3/5 Gloucester Avenue Berwick, for any of my Victorian friends.

They are actually a beauty bar, specialising in hairdressing, all manner of beauty and spa packages, as well as pamper parties (YES!) for kids, teens, AND adults (next time 🙂 ).

There’s nothing like a good ol’ Tupperware party to get the girly chins wagging, and the food juices flowing.

I mean, I am totally biased tonight. My sister hosted the party where baby girl and I were completely at ease in her home, while one of my oldest friends ran the show as Tupperware ‘agent’ as it were.

We picked up containers, looked at all the nifty tricks and tips and things to make food prep and cooking more convenient, and ‘oohed’ and ‘ahhed’ over just how good that 20 minute microwavable risotto tasted.

And although it wasn’t the biggest group of gals there… well it is more about the quality of the company, isn’t it? The interaction, the conversation, let’s face it, the BUYING… ha ha ha.

I mean, every girlneeds a set of plastic durable containers in an assortment of colours in their life? It sounds ridiculous you say? You have clearly NEVER been to a party.

How do you define love on what is the commercially-made greatest LOVE fest of the year?

Is it by a card?

A rose?

A dozen roses?

Is it a sweet treat, a bottle of bubbly, or a fine dining experience?

Is it a movie?

Or maybe a hot air balloon ride (*cough, ahem Hubbie *cough)

A massage, some intimate time together, or a long walk?

How about none of those. My love token today came in the form of meat, and I am being COMPLETELY innocent here guys.

Hubbie cooked up a huge piece of T-Bone steak for dinner. And as we served our plates up, he told me he had cut off the fillet part of the steak, which is essentially THE BEST part of the meat for you vegetarians/non-Butcher wives, and it was all for ME.

There is nothing better is there, than to catch up with loved ones and eat ’til your hearts content, drink just as much, and blab your deepest desires, sing from the depths of your loins, and just have a ‘bloody’ good time?

This all happened tonight, and every time we have nights like this, I do NOT take them for granted. I am always grateful for the love, laughs, support and great memories we make together.

Half of it was planned you see, when my beautiful cousin popped over with the recent princess of the family – her daughter – and we bonded all together with baby girl (despite some Diva-esque moments from my little one, still tired from thatWave Pool yesterday!) talking life, family, kids, parenting, and everything else in between.

And then later on, an unplanned, impromptu visit, by my sister and her family. We threw things together – I made my spicy rice which I have been planning on showing them the recipe for for AGES… the barbeque was turned on, radio up just as high, and there was plenty of laughter and lightness, with a gentle dose of D&M too.

Like I said, it was a BIG day. I had moments of tiredness, but the great company I was in, the love in the house, and the laughter abounding, inspired me and kept me going.

And one of the best things I heard today? Advice from my 15 year-old nephew. After telling him about my writing and blogs and stuff (I am still letting people know, s-l-o-w-l-y) and expressing some of my deep-seeded fears related to it, he sat next to me and said

“you can’t let your fear of what other people will think or say of your writing, stop you from putting yourself out there.”

And to get such instant emotional support from my family network, filled my heart with such courage, love, and joy.

A new Summer tradition has developed in our family, off the back of baby girl’s newly acquired addiction…

That is, ice cream.

She will be half-way through her dinner when she will turn to either Hubbie or myself, and say something along the lines of “Me finish ALL my dinner – then please have ice cream, PLEASE?!?!?!”

She will be in our faces, tone pleading, eyes squinty, hands clasped together in prayer mode, and there is NO WAY you can ignore her.

I have no issue with her getting a treat after she has eaten her food, fine.

But she is doing this every night.

I figure because she does eat the food in all her meals, she is allowed to then receive a treat, and I let her know this too – no eaten dinner, no treat!

Tonight’s request was made harder to ignore, because I suddenly remembered I needed something urgently at the shops… so we all headed down there after dinner, and soon ALL3 of us were standing and staring through the glass windows of the frozen aisle.

Hubbie picked the classic Magnum Almond…

I picked the exciting small tub of Arnott’s Caramel Crowns…

and baby girl picked the Paw Patrol chocolate and vanilla ice cream

And then we went home to do what we do so often after dinner. Sit out the front of the house and enjoy.

And you know what, it is a nice thing to do. We’re taking all of 5-10 minutes out of the busy evenings to just sit, be peaceful, watch the dog-walkers go by, the sunset fade into the horizon, and the mozzies start to hover perilously close… just enough time to forget about the dishes waiting for us in the sink, to forget about the house we have to tidy, to forget the baths, the showers, the getting ready for the next day, for EVERYTHING.